Published 18:00 IST, January 30th 2025
Video Shows Exact Moment Hamas Hands Over Israeli Hostage Arbel Yehoud to The Red Cross
Yehoud, 29, had been held hostage by Hamas since October 7, 2023, and was confirmed to have been among the seven hostages released on Jan 30.

New Delhi: A video showing Israeli soldier Arbel Yehoud being escorted by Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters before being handed over to the International Red Cross in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, has emerged and is going viral on social media.
For the unversed, Yehoud, 29, had been held hostage by Hamas since October 7, 2023, and was confirmed to have been among the seven hostages released on Thursday.Yehoud was at the center of the dispute about the sequence of releases that briefly rocked the ceasefire over the weekend. Israel says she was supposed to have been freed Saturday and delayed the opening of crossings to northern Gaza when she was not.
What's in the Video?
The video shows Yehoud being escorted through a packed crowd of Palestinians and armed militants near the former residence of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar. She appears visibly distressed as she and her captors make their way through the turmoil, struggling to push through the crowd toward the waiting Red Cross vehicle.
Netanyahu Condemns Chaos During Release of Hostages
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the chaotic scenes at the site of a second hostage release in Gaza on Thursday.
“I view with utmost severity the shocking scenes during the release of our hostages,” Netanyahu said in a statement released by his office shortly after the handover was completed. He said he “demands that the mediators make certain that such terrible scenes do not recur and guarantee the safety of our hostages.”
Israel-Hamas Ceasefire
The Israeli Army confirmed the release of Yehoud, along with two other Israelis and five Thai nationals. It's the third such exchange since a ceasefire took hold in the Gaza Strip earlier this month.
The tenuous ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is aimed at ending the war in Gaza and securing the release of dozens of hostages held by the militant group, as well as hundreds of Palestinians imprisoned or detained by Israel.
Under the ceasefire, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have jubilantly returned to northern Gaza over the past three days. However, their homecoming has been bittersweet as nearly everyone has friends or relatives who died, and many northern neighbourhoods have been transformed into an apocalyptic landscape of devastation after more than 15 months of the war.
Updated 00:50 IST, February 4th 2025